PATIENT STORIES Local Artist Paints Again After Gamma Knife Radiosurgery

Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento

Sutter Amador Hospital

Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital

Sutter Davis Hospital

Sutter Medical Foundation

Sutter Roseville Medical Center

Sutter Solano Medical Center

A self-proclaimed lifelong student of art, 79-year-old painter Fred Ekman has travelled
the world painting and teaching his craft to others. The artist's iconic watercolors
depict Northern California landscapes, Spanish missions, French architecture and South
Pacific seascapes. Now retired, he lives with his wife of 58 years in Sun City Lincoln
Hills and enjoys teaching classes to aspiring painters.

When he began experiencing uncontrollable hand tremors about seven years ago, painting
became nearly impossible for the acclaimed artist. Ekman was diagnosed with essential
tremor, a nervous system disorder that causes rhythmic shaking, and was referred to
Nicklesh Thakur, M.D., a neurologist who specializes in movement disorders at the
Sutter Neuroscience Institute.

"The essential tremor brought my painting to
a standstill," Ekman says, who had already been living with another neurological condition—trigeminal
neuralgia—since 2000. Trigeminal neuralgia causes extreme and unexpected pain
flare-ups in the face and is sometimes mistaken for a toothache or sinus problem.
Ekman had been on the anti-seizure medication Tegretol for several years to control
his nerve pain.

To calm Ekman's shaking hands, Dr. Thakur prescribed Primidone,
another anti-seizure medication that is also effective in controlling essential tremor.
The medication did suppress his tremors. However, both medications had several undesirable
side effects. "I felt off-balance, drowsy and fatigued," Ekman says. "All I wanted
to do was sleep."

Tired of feeling unsteady and exhausted, Ekman talked to Dr.
Thakur to explore alternative treatments for his essential tremor so that he could
paint once again. Dr. Thakur recommended Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), a surgical
treatment involving the implantation of a medical device called a brain pacemaker
that sends electrical impulses to the brain to stop the tremors.

Unfortunately,
shortly before his DBS treatment, Ekman encountered unrelated health problems and
the surgery had to be cancelled. Because Fred now had a pacemaker to treat congestive
heart failure, he was no longer a candidate for DBS.

On the day of the procedure, Ekman was fitted with
a lightweight frame designed to stabilize his head and help team members focus the
radiation beams to precisely target the trigeminal nerve. With the help of imaging,
the team used three-dimensional, computerized technology to figure out exactly where
to administer the radiation. Once this was determined, the 90-minute Gamma Knife procedure
took place. Ekman was able to go home later that afternoon and felt immediate relief
from his nerve pain.

"I was anxious not knowing how much discomfort I'd be in,
but I actually fell asleep during the procedure," Ekman says. "It was a piece of cake."

About
a month later, Ekman received more good news. "I got a call from Dr. Ciricillo's office
asking if I'd like to consider Gamma Knife to treat my essential tremor," he says.

After
the success of his first Gamma Knife treatment, it was an easy decision for Ekman.
The second treatment went as smoothly as the first one, and he is now completely off
of the medications for both his essential tremor and trigeminal neuralgia.

Ekman
and his wife recently returned from a cruise to Hawaii, where he spent much of his
time painting aboard the ship. The artist is grateful for the care that allowed him
to return to painting, teaching and an active lifestyle. "I was very confident in
Dr. Ciricillo and the rest of the Gamma Knife team. Had I not been, I'd still be on
medications and living with the side effects," he says.